Body mass index called a misleading estimate of weight

Everyone knows that the body mass index (BMI) is precisely the value that allows us to assess the degree of correspondence between a person’s weight and his height and determine whether the weight is insufficient, normal or excessive (obesity). The term was coined in 1869 by the Belgian sociologist and statistician Adolphe Ketele.

But scientists from Weill Cornell Medical School have made a statement that BMI is very ineffective. They conducted an experiment on 1,400 volunteers, first calculating the body mass index (the ratio of a person's weight and height squared), and then doing a computer scan, which made it possible to accurately determine the amount of fat, muscle mass and bone density.

As a result, experts determined that BMI in 50% of cases in women and in 25% of cases in men did not correspond to the indicators. So, at first they diagnosed obesity in a quarter of the volunteers, and the scan helped identify excess adipose tissue in 65%.

In particular, the BMI error affected women 70 years and older, who had already lost the line between muscle mass and fat. Only a computer could detect it.

Now scientists are calling not to trust the formula for determining BMI, but to do a scan or donate blood to detect elevated levels of the hormone leptin, which is associated with fat cells.